Klein Pavlis & Peasley Financial Inc. Sells 4,400 Shares of Hershey Company (The) $HSY

Klein Pavlis & Peasley Financial Inc. decreased its position in Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) by 41.6% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 6,184 shares of the company’s stock after selling 4,400 shares during the quarter. Klein Pavlis & Peasley Financial Inc.’s holdings in Hershey were worth $1,157,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 1,537.5% in the 3rd quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 131 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 123 shares during the last quarter. Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH purchased a new position in Hershey in the 2nd quarter worth $28,000. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Hershey in the second quarter worth $31,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC boosted its position in Hershey by 46.3% during the second quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 199 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 63 shares during the period. Finally, Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Hershey during the second quarter valued at about $36,000. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. DA Davidson lowered their target price on Hershey from $188.00 to $185.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 10th. Piper Sandler set a $213.00 price target on Hershey and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Bank of America increased their price objective on Hershey from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 19th. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Hershey from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $195.00 to $211.00 in a report on Monday, December 15th. Finally, TD Cowen lowered their price target on shares of Hershey from $204.00 to $200.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 31st. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seventeen have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $189.53.

Hershey Stock Performance

Shares of HSY stock opened at $197.68 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.55 and a beta of 0.18. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $184.42 and a 200 day moving average of $182.81. Hershey Company has a 52 week low of $140.13 and a 52 week high of $201.86. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $1.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.06 by $0.24. Hershey had a net margin of 11.84% and a return on equity of 32.08%. The business had revenue of $3.18 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.11 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.34 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Hershey has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.900-6.000 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 17th were issued a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 17th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 81.91%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hershey

In other news, CEO Kirk Tanner purchased 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 21st. The shares were bought at an average cost of $185.46 per share, for a total transaction of $370,920.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 47,860 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,876,115.60. This trade represents a 4.36% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Stacy Taffet purchased 200 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 21st. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $186.19 per share, for a total transaction of $37,238.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider owned 9,371 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,744,786.49. This trade represents a 2.18% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders have sold 6,000 shares of company stock valued at $1,102,725. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hershey Company Profile

The Hershey Company (NYSE: HSY) is a leading North American chocolatier and snack manufacturer headquartered in Hershey, Pennsylvania. The company develops, produces and markets a wide range of confectionery and snack products for retail, foodservice and international customers. Hershey’s business spans manufacturing, branded product marketing, packaging and distribution across grocery, convenience, mass merchant and e-commerce channels.

Hershey’s product portfolio centers on chocolate and sugar confectionery, including core brands such as Hershey’s, Reese’s, Hershey’s Kisses and Twizzlers, alongside non-chocolate snacks and confectionery brands.